Iran's Space Monkey Spark U.S. Missile Technology Concern

Iran successfully launched a monkey into space Monday and back, sparking concern among U.S. officials and missile watchdog groups who cite that the same technology could be used to extend the reach of Iran's military weapons.

According to Iranian news reports, the country's space agency launched a monkey into space and returned it to Earth in a mission using the Iranian-built Kavoshgar 5 rocket.

The launch, while unconfirmed by Western monitoring groups, has raised eyebrows because the rockets developed for such missions could also be used to fire weapons across continents.

 The launch is being billed by Iran as the prelude to sending humans into space, which they aim to achieve in the next five to eight years.

"People are speaking about it a lot, and rightfully so," said Brig-Gen. (res.) Asaf Agmon. "[Iran's] space program is connected to their missile program and the science you need to launch a monkey into space is the same that you need to send a warhead over the Atlantic Ocean, so there's a connection and the world can't ignore it," according to the Jerusalem Post.

Agmon is CEO of the Fisher Institute for Air and Space Strategic Studies, which is hosting the conference this week.

He said Iran has placed itself firmly among the group of 10 nations with the ability to send satellites into space, saying "the fact is that the Iranians are very serious in this field. They had failures at first, but they got over them very quickly and they're taking this field [space] very seriously. We don't have to love this, but it's the reality."